AiMToronto [dot] org

h o m e a b o u t m e m b e r s h i p e v e n t s c o n t a c t

a i m t o r o n t o [ d o t ] o r g
b o a r d o f d i r e c t o r s

parmela attariwala

nilan perera

rob piilonen

joe sorbara

scott thomson

parmela attariwala

bio coming soon...

rob piilonen

Sudbury native Rob Piilonen is a flute player, composer, and DJ who has been active in the Toronto improvising scene since 1996. Rob's flute playing spans many styles, lending his unique sound to folk, pop, latin, electronic, jazz and creative improvising in many settings. He has scored music for films and dance projects, and worked with a number of Toronto's leaders in various fields of the arts, music, and production. He teaches private lessons, and is currently employed by the Canadian Opera Company, after working in Marketing and Audience Development at the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for several years. He currently leads the chamber-improv ensemble Rob's Collision, and is also in several other groups (DuoDuo w/ Mitch Yolevsky, Whisper w/ Colin Fisher, The Centaurs).

more @ rob's myspace page

joe sorbara

Drummer, composer and improviser Joe Sorbara has developed a reputation as a diverse and musical presence on Toronto's growing jazz and improvised music scene. His own projects include the sextet Other Foot First and the Pickle Juice Orchestra. Joe co-leads a number of ensembles including the Remnants Trio (with Evan Shaw and Ken Aldcroft), PST (with Scott Thomson and Nilan Perera). Joe also performs on a regular basis with Ken Adcroft's Convergence Ensemble, Nilan Perera's Holyblueghost, and Ronda Rindone's Quorum.

In addition to his activities as a performing musician, Sorbara is runs Oval Window Records and serves the Toronto music community as a co-curator of the weekly Leftover Daylight series. He also sits on the board of the Canadian New Music Network and is a founding board member of AIMToronto.

more @ oval window music dot org

scott thomson

Scott Thomson is a trombonist for whom music is primarily about meeting and sharing experiences with great, creative people. Improvisation is his preferred working method to this end, since it provides the means by which to work with the widest range of fellow musicians and artists. While he plays in several working bands, delving into jazz-based composition (Ken Aldcroft's Convergence, Geordie Haley Trio), collective improvisation (Joust with John Oswald, Ronda Rindone's Quorum, The Open, Woodchopper's Association), and pop and rock (Friendly Rich and the Lollipop People, Silent Five), Scott makes ad hoc improvising ensembles a priority. As a result, he has had a chance to play with many incredible musicians from Ontario and elsewhere, most notably with the marvelous octogenarian alto saxophonist, Marshall Allen, long-time member and current leader of the legendary Sun Ra Arkestra.

As a trombonist, Scott has made a specialty of the expanded technical vocabulary that is rarely exploited by conventional trombonists; he deploys mutes, breath sounds, sung multiphonics, and percussive attacks along with more conventional techniques in search of new possibilities for the horn's expressive range.

Scott is fascinated by all facets of artistic communication, and has often worked with film-makers and dancers. In particular, he has worked extensively with choreographer Julie Lebel's Ensemble Independant, and has made music for Lebel's "Cette Violente Franchise" in performance throughout Ontario and Quebec. The Ensemble's 2003 residency in the remote mining town of Fermont won the ROSEQ "New Publics" award for Arts and Community development in Eastern Quebec.

Apart from his work as a performer, Scott is also active as a board member and volunteer coordinator for the Association of Improvising Musicians Toronto, a not-for-profit collective which supports and promotes the work of creative improvisers in Southern Ontario. He also writes about music in scholarly and popular contexts, leads workshops on improvisation for both children and adults, and teaches and does research at the University of Guelph and at Trent University, Peterborough.

past board members

ken aldcroft

rob clutton

nick fraser

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